THE PESO jumped to a near five-month high on Wednesday as the dollar took a hit from trade war and growth concerns following the Trump administration’s move to impose tariffs on its major trading partners.

The local unit closed at P57.345 per dollar on Wednesday, strengthening by 40.8 centavos from its P57.753 finish on Tuesday, Bankers Association of the Philippines data showed.

This was the peso’s best finish in nearly five months or since its P57.205-a-dollar close on Oct. 11, 2024.

The peso opened Wednesday’s session higher at P57.60 against the dollar. It traded stronger than Tuesday’s close the entire session as its intraday low was at just P57.61, while its best showing for the day was at P57.315 versus the greenback.

Dollars exchanged rose to $1.55 billion from $1.04 billion on Tuesday.

“The peso ended higher on the back of a weak dollar amid concerns over slowing US growth, the impact of tariffs on the US economy, and after the announcement of retaliatory tariffs from China, Canada, and Mexico,” a trader said in a phone interview.

The dollar dropped to a three-month low on Wednesday as markets reeled from a trade war triggered by US President Donald J. Trump, who again vowed reciprocal tariffs in his first speech to Congress since taking of-fice, Reuters reported.

Moves in currencies were volatile as investors fretted about the impact of escalating global trade tensions on the world economy.

In an address to Congress, Mr. Trump said further tariffs would follow on April 2, including “reciprocal tariffs” and non-tariff actions aimed at balancing out years of trade imbalances.

The dollar initially ticked higher as Mr. Trump was speaking, though later erased those gains to hit a low of 105.46 against a basket of currencies, its weakest since Dec. 6.

Investors have sold the dollar in a reversal of the so-called “Trump trades” which first gathered steam late last year, as they become increasingly concerned with the growth outlook for the world’s largest economy, which is al-ready showing signs of a slowdown.

The US President’s remarks to Congress comes just after he followed through on new 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada that took effect on Tuesday, along with a doubling of duties on Chinese goods to 20%.

Canada and China quickly acted in kind, while Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum vowed retaliation but without details, saying she would announce Mexico’s response on Sunday.

Meanwhile, slower-than-expected February Philippine inflation also supported the peso on Wednesday, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

Headline inflation sharply decelerated to 2.1% in February from 2.9% in January, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported on Wednesday.

The February consumer price index was the slowest print in five months or since the 1.9% clip in September 2024. It was also below the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ 2.2%-3.% forecast and the 2.6% median estimate in a Busi-nessWorld poll of 18 analysts.

For Thursday, the trader expects the peso to move between P57.10 and P57.50 per dollar, while Mr. Ricafort said it could range from P57.20 to P57.50. — Aaron Michael C. Sy with Reuters

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